Image FIles
When you are hiring a photographer, you are buying images. I want to take a moment to explain what you are getting when you hire me. I am a fan of printed photos, 4x6 prints, large prints, canvas prints, photo books, etc, but most of the time we are looking at photos on a phone or computer screen. Most of what you get are image files, in jpg format. You will either receive full size photos, 20 megapixels, suitable for printing at any size, or you will receive smaller files suitable for display on social media and phones. If you want to print large, you need all the details of full size files. If you aren’t printing, the full size files can be awkward to work with, and take a lot of space to store. One copy of my active photo library takes up over two terabytes, and I have several archives on top of that. Those full size files don’t always look their best on social media, because the website resizes the image to fit and to save money. It is better to start with an image file that is the right size, and that is why I provide smaller files for you to use on your socials.
The other thing you get is a license to use those files. You are getting a personal use license, which means that you can do anything you want with your images, except for certain commercial uses. You can’t use the images to advertise goods or services, and you can’t sell the images for use in other products. Some internet advice suggests that you need to get the copyright for your images, but you do not. Purchasing the copyright would increase your cost with no real benefit for you. If you need or want to use your images for something other than what is covered in your personal use license, we can set up an appropriate license agreement without getting into copyright.